Long-tailed Tit New

Often called the Long-tailed Tit, wrongly because it is not a true tit, the Long-tailed Tit is a species of passerine bird in the Aegithalidae family. This small passerine was formerly called Tupinet or Orite.

The Long-tailed Tit has a compact body, a large round head with a small beak and a very long black and white tail. It is a very small bird with a very long tail and small round wings. It has a slightly pinkish white belly, with a white and grey head. In the vast majority of individuals living in the Benelux, France and Switzerland, a black band from the forehead to the nape passing above the eye.
Outside the nesting period, the Long-tailed Tit lives in family flocks. These small groups of around ten to thirty birds fly from one tree to another.

Long-tailed Tit
Scientific name : Aegithalos caudatus
Family : Aegithalidae
Length 16 cm – Wingspan : from 17 cm to 18 cm
Weight : from 7 gr to 10 gr
IUCN Conservation Status : LC

Flight

The flight of the Long-tailed Orite is low, slow and bounding with rapid wing beats.

Habitat

It is found almost everywhere in Europe (except Iceland, northern Finland and Norway). Deciduous forests and mixed deciduous-coniferous woodlands are its optimal habitat. It is also found in parks, gardens, hedgerows and copses. Non-migratory, it is sedentary, and occupies its sites all year round.

Diet of Long-tailed Tit

The Long-tailed Tit’s short, stocky bill is too weak to handle tough or frozen food. The adult Long-tailed Tit therefore feeds mainly on insects, their larvae and eggs. It also feeds on other small invertebrates. Using its small bill, the Orite dislodges its prey from gaps such as cracks in tree bark. It also picks insects, such as aphids, from leaves and buds. Some small, soft seeds are eaten, such as those of Japanese spindle and honeysuckle. It does not disdain bird feeders in winter.
Unlike true tits, the Long-tailed Tit rarely descends to the ground to feed. However, like them, it can hang upside down or hold its food in one leg.

Nesting

The Long-tailed Tit differs from tits in that it does not nest in existing cavities. This small passerine bird builds its own cavity from scratch in a tree or bush, unlike other Paridae. The Long-tailed Tit is one of the best builders in the bird kingdom and, although it is one of the smallest birds in our country, it builds a large nest for its size (about 20 cm long by 12 cm).
The nest is an oval construction, completely closed, with a side entrance in the upper part. However, its construction requires 15 to 20 days of work by the two birds. The wall is made of moss and lichen, with a small amount of plant fibers, all held together by spider thread. Thus the nest goes completely unnoticed in a green context. (Ivy against a trunk or a wall, bushy conifer branch, etc.)

The Long-tailed Tit has one to two clutches per year of 6 to 12 white eggs tinged with pink and dotted with red. The first takes place between mid-April and mid-May, the second in June.

An incredible quantity of small feathers line the internal cavity. The female alone incubates the eggs for 12 or 13 days. The little orites remain in the nest for 15 to 18 days before taking flight. They remain, however, close to their parents. It has even been observed that they later help them to feed the young born from a second clutch.

Protection

The Long-tailed Tit has enjoyed total protection on French territory since the ministerial decree of 17 April 1981 relating to birds protected throughout the territory. It is therefore prohibited to destroy, mutilate, capture or remove it, to intentionally disturb or naturalise it, as well as to destroy or remove eggs and nests, and to destroy, alter or degrade its environment.
The species is common, not globally threatened. The range is very large. During the winter, the troops require large territories. Habitat fragmentation and degradation can thus threaten local populations. It is vulnerable to harsh winters.

Song – Cry

Its cry or song is rare and insignificant, composed of cries. Fine and high-pitched cries, repeated: si-si, tititi.